AP EURO DBQ REVIEW
So much fun!
THINGS TO REMEMBER
• There isn’t a “right” or “wrong” answer to the question.
• But there is a right and a wrong way to interpret the
question and/or the documents!
• Make sure you understand WHAT the question is asking you,
because you must answer ALL PARTS of the question!
• Example: “Analyze how political, social, and religious factors
affected the work of scientists in the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries.”
THINGS TO REMEMBER
• You must use a majority of the documents- at least 70%, so
check your math.
• You will have to address CHANGE OVER TIME in most cases.
• Example: Analyze attitudes and responses to “the poor”in
Europe between approximately 1450 and 1700. (Taken from the
2004 AP Exam)
STEP 1: ANALYZE YOUR DOCUMENTS
• You need to understand WHAT each document says, WHO is
saying it, and WHY they are saying it.
• There are various ways you can do this:
• APPARTS (you already know how to do this- but you should not
skimp on details.)
• SOAPSTone.
SOAPSTONE
• S: Speaker. Who is speaking? What social class? What occupation? What
religion, ethnicity, nationality? MORE THAN THE NAME.
• O: Occasion. When is this happening? To what event is it referring? What
time period/era? Under what circumstances?
• A: Audience. To whom is the speaker speaking?
• P: Purpose. Why is this being said? What is the speakers intent in saying
this? What does he/she want the audience to know or believe?
• S: Subject. What is the speaker saying about the topic? Is t political, social,
religious, economic, intellectual, artistic, moral?
• Tone: Is the speaker angry? Sad? Happy? Hopeful? Pessimistic? Sarcastic?
Ironic? Funny? Is the speaker reliable?
STEP 2: GROUPINGS
• Once you have analyzed the POV for each document (with APPARTS or
SOAPSTone, if it helps), you must group your documents into at least 3
groups.
• Each group should have a common theme.
• Some common ways to group POVs:
• Nationalities or ethnicities
• Gender
• Religious groups
• Different social classes
• Political views/ Same argument
• Different time periods or years; “before and after” groups.
• Any other identifiable groups? You decide!
• *** Some questions will already have groups done for you, others don’t.
ABOUT POV:
• NOT the same thing as an opinion!
• When you use a document, you have to explain WHY the
person in said document has expressed their opinion. Why
do they have that perspective?
• REMEMBER: YOU WILL GET ONLY 15 MINUTES TO ANALYZE
THE DOCUMENTS DURING THE AP EXAM. PRACTICE
MAKES PERFECT.
ANOTHER WAY TO LOOK AT POV
Attribution
Job, position, role, gender, age, nationality, race, religion.
Tone
How did he/she say it? Express himself?
What words did they use to indicate their perspective?
For example, sarcasm, excitement, criticism, etc.
Intent
Does the speaker have an ulterior motive?
What is he/she trying to accomplish?
Reliability
Can the speaker in the doc be trusted??
STEP 3: THE THESIS STATEMENT
• Your thesis must be CONCISE, CLEAR, and ANSWER ALL PARTS OF
THE QUESTION.
• Your thesis must include some SPECIFIC facts. Don’t write a generic
statement.
• Your thesis must contain an ARGUMENT. In other words, you are
trying to prove something.
• It will be in the introductory paragraph, but should NOT be your
very first sentence.
• Don’t try to be cute or poetic- it’s not creative writing.
• EXAMPLE PROMPT: Analyze the various causes of the Thirty Years’ War
in Europe during the seventeenth century.
STEP 3: THE THESIS STATEMENT
• Example of a bad thesis: “There were several causes for the Thirty
Years War.”
• Very generic, nothing specific or explicit.
• Example of a great thesis: “Despite the fact that the Thirty Years War
was fought mostly over religious conflicts between Catholics and
Protestants in Europe during the 17th century, the competition between
growing national monarchies and the weakening of the Church’s
secular authority in Europe were just as significant to the outbreak of
this destructive conflict.”
• Specific explicit examples
• Contains an argument- it explains what some causes were, and
leaves room for growth in the essay.
STEP 4: INTRODUCTION PARAGRAPH
• Establish TIME and PLACE
• Provide background information: What was happening at the
time? What were the social/political/economic conditions? What
is so prominent about this time period?
• State your thesis.
• Don’t give a laundry list of facts. Make connections between
causes and effects.
STEP 5: THE BODY
• Identify your sub-topic or category in the first sentence of each
paragraph.
• Include the documents that are relevant to support the ideas in the
paragraph.
• Use most of the documents given [70%].
• Be sure to indicate Point-of-View
(POV)/bias.
• Bring in supportive outside information [o.i.]. This is critical!!
• Why were these documents selected?
A WORD ON CITING DOCUMENTS
• Don’t quote them at length- it will consume time and space. Instead,
you should paraphrase.
• This also shows that you understand the document.
• ICE: Introduce, Cite, Explain.
• You may refer to the document number, but don’t cite ONLY by doc
number.
• Martin Luther, a German monk, believed salvation could be
achieved “through faith alone” (doc. 1)
SHOWING ANALYSIS IN THE BODY
• Once you have referenced a document, explain and analyze.
• “It is not surprising that Source X would make this statement
because…”
• “This document is fairly reliable because…”
• “The author of this document may be biased because…”
• “Because document 5 is a diary entry, the author is most likely not
trying to gain any publicity or influence opinion.”
• And… if you get stuck, remember this one word: OBVIOUSLY
• “Obviously, Source X is….”
STEP 6: THE CONCLUSION
• The cherry on top of your essay, it’s a good way to earn some of those
“expanded core” points.
• Start with a “concluding phrase.”
• Restate your thesis statement a bit differently.
• Put your essay answer in a larger historical perspective.
• End of some trend/movement/idea, etc.
• Beginning of some trend/movement/idea, etc.
• End of one & beginning of another.
• Relate to a similar pattern of history from another time or present day.
• Do NOT end on the note that this is the reason we are where we are today!